We have a long track record of working closely with private developers to help them deliver their affordable housing obligations as part of Section 106 (S106) agreements.
We aim to be fully involved in design development. That way we can provide vital information on the social housing requirements within a scheme at an early stage. We see our role as not only advising on the design of the affordable housing but also acting as an intermediary between the developer and the council in agreeing the details of the affordable housing requirements and terms of the Section 106 agreements.
Here are some examples of Section 106 schemes in which we are the affordable housing provider
Heart of East Greenwich, London Borough of Greenwich
Southern Housing Group is working with First Base to deliver this scheme which is set to regenerate the site of the former Greenwich District Hospital and will deliver one of London’s first major zero-carbon developments.
Designed by Make Architects, the Heart of East Greenwich will create a new town square and civic ‘hub’ including state of the art leisure and health facilities, a new library and crèche as well as a range of shops, cafes and flexible workspaces to support local creative industries.
Homes in the development will provide a combination of family, Key Worker, affordable rent and outright sale housing within a range of one, two, three and four bedroom homes. Once completed, Greenwich Council will run the public and leisure facilities operating on the site and Southern Housing Group will be providing management services across all residential tenures.
Tabard Square, London Borough of Southwark
This is a large landmark development near Borough High Street. We worked closely with Berkeley Homes on the development of 212 affordable homes incorporating rent, intermediate rent and shared ownership tenures. A number of the shared ownership units are being developed by Southern Housing Group using funding from English Partnerships.
'One Gallions', London Borough of Newham
Working with Crest Nicholson and BioRegional Quintain, Southern Housing Group and its partners were selected by the London Development Agency at the beginning of 2007 as the consortia to deliver this-zero carbon scheme at Gallions Park. The scheme will comprise around 260 homes, with 35 percent affordable which will be indistinguishable from the private homes.
The development is planned around the principles of ‘One Planet Living’ and will reduce carbon emissions and wider environmental impacts through measures such as renewable energy, recycling facilities, greenhouses and a car club.
Royal Arsenal, London Borough of Greenwich
Built on former Ministry of Defence land and working with the London Development Agency, English Heritage and Berkeley Homes, Southern Housing Group currently has 623 affordable houses and flats for affordable rent and intermediate tenures. A further building is currently under construction and will provide 300 affordable homes, all of which meet the Code for Sustainable homes Level 3 and are heated through a CHP plant housed in one of the historic buildings within the wider scheme.
Our partnership with Berkeley Homes won the ‘What House’ Gold Award for Partnership Development in 2003 and this partnership will deliver a further 1000 homes for private sale and over 500 more affordable homes under the new Masterplan for a major extension to the site. In addition to the new DLR station being constructed in Woolwich, the Royal Arsenal development will construct the station box for the future Woolwich Crossrail station, providing even stronger transport links to the City and Canary Wharf.
This exciting regeneration scheme has been shortlisted for the ‘Best Practice In Regeneration Award’ by the British Urban Regeneration Association.
King Alfred Redevelopment, City of Brighton & Hove
Southern Housing Group was selected by the developer Karis Holdings and City of Brighton & Hove to deliver the 282 affordable housing sites on this high profile redevelopment of an existing sports centre on Hove sea front. We worked with Karis and architects, Frank Gehry, for several years on the design concept and pre-application design development. Planning consent has recently been granted, although the project is now on hold due to the ‘credit crunch’.
Gainsborough Studios, London Borough of Hackney
This is a prestigious development on the site where Alfred Hitchcock’s early films were produced, comprising 174 flats overlooking Regents Canal in Shoreditch on the Islington/Hackney border. We worked in partnership with Lincoln Holdings to produce 32 units for low cost home ownership and 8 units for affordable rent in an early example of pepper-potting. As well as priority residential accommodation, the site also houses a restaurant, 78 live-work units, a supermarket and a film screening facility. The scheme was awarded a ‘Building for Life’, Gold Standard in 2004.
Brewery Square, London Borough of Islington
We worked with Berkeley Homes to redevelop this former Brewery site in the heart of Clerkenwell. The development uses contemporary design to create an exciting, mixed-use development incorporating a gallery and exhibition space, retail units and 261 residential sites. Of these, 43 are affordable rented units and 14 are shared ownership. This scheme was been awarded a ‘Building for Life’ Gold Standard in 2004.